WORLD number one cruised to his fourth Masters Cup title after a comprehensive 6-2 6-3 6-2 victory over David Ferrer. The world number one outclassed his in- form Spanish opponent in just 98 minutes in the final in Shanghai with a series of impressive groundstrokes. Federer was troubled once in the fifth game of the second set, but cast aside the blip to win his 53rd career title. Against Ferrer, known as one of the quickest and best defensive players, Federer was even quicker in tracking down shots that would have been winners against almost anyone else, never giving up on a point, and mixing in good offence, too. The scene was similar in Federer's semifinal against second-ranked Rafael Nadal, his defensive-minded rival who succumbed in just 59 minutes. And hard-serving number five Andy Roddick could only watch in frustration as Federer landed 83 percent of his own first serves and yielded just two games in two sets. Ferrer has been the revelation of the tournament, the sixth seed boasting an unbeaten record prior to the final. However the 25-year- old had never beaten Federer in seven previous encounters, a factor which weighed heavily on his mind. The match began in the worst possible way for Ferrer as Federer broke his serve twice to wrap up the set in just 26 minutes. The Spaniard began the second in a more confident fashion, but unforced errors on serve in the seventh game handed the initiative back to Federer, who broke Ferrer's next service game to claim the set. Ferrer looked increasingly dejected as the Swiss star continued to fire down unreturnable serves and conjure winners from nowhere in the third. And Federer clinched his second successive Masters Cup with a thumping forehand winner. Only three other players in history -- Ilie Nastase, Ivan Lendl and Pete Sampras -- have won the season-ending finale four or more times. But Ferrer, who beat Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic on his path to the final, believes Federer is the best of the lot. Federer collected $1.2 million and a new car for his 53rd career title, his eighth this year. His season winnings topped $10 million, a record for the ATP Tour. The Masters Cup will again be played in Shanghai in 2008, but it will move to London in 2009 for four years and be renamed the ATP World Tour Finals. On the other hand, Federer will play the first of three matches against seven-time Wimbledon champion Pete Sampras in Seoul on Tuesday. Federer, who retained his Masters Cup title on Sunday, will also take on Sampras in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday and Macau on Saturday. The night match on 22 November will be played in the Malawati Stadium in Kuala Lumpur on a medium speed indoor carpet. Sampras, aged 36, retired in 2002 but has been training hard for the exhibitions. Federer, 26, won his 12th Grand Slam title at the US Open in September and is closing in on Sampras's record of 14. Federer and Sampras have met only once in competition, with the Swiss winning a five-set thriller in the fourth round of Wimbledon in 2001. But the pair did practise together earlier at Sampras' Los Angeles home. In addition to that, Federer has announced via his website that he will take on Sampras in another exhibition match on 10 March 2008 at Madison Square Garden in New York.
